Written by Carlee Driscoll form Chilli Group

This is not just a cliché. This is a sound piece of advice that can be applied to many areas of life and indeed business. As business people we all need to rely on the experts to get the best for our business, but imagine how much more effective you could be if those experts were also prepared to educate you on how to do it yourself over time. Marketing planning should be no exception to this philosophy. Planning your marketing is not rocket science.
It’s a tried and tested process that once learnt and put in place, business owners can continue to use and reap the
benefts from. Sure, there are a few tricky concepts and some complexities along the way but nothing a capable business owner can’t handle with a little guidance!

Where are businesses going wrong in their marketing planning? Some are failing to do it at all which signals
disaster as they fumble through the year spending unwisely and never seeing initiatives through. Others are trying
their best but appear to be making the same mistakes repeatedly and need a nudge in the right direction. Both these groups are not terribly likely to see good return on their marketing dollar. Most small to medium businesses
that we come across on the Sunshine Coast do want to take control of their marketing planning but simply don’t
have the tools or know-how to do this effectively. Taking the time and energy to have an expert holding your hand
for the frst six to 12 months should equip you with the tangible tools, the base knowledge and the confdence
to continue to execute and update your marketing planning into the future.

It’s just like spending time with a man to show him where to fsh and how to bait the hook, cast the line and reel the fsh in. He would struggle to learn if you simply gave him a fshing rod and walked away, but with a little help he should soon be self-suffcient. Sure, he’ll always appreciate advice from the fshing experts, but he’ll have all the basics under control. Experience has taught us that the fundamental process of marketing planning is teachable. It’s a series of steps (10 to be precise) but it’s not simply a linear process. It’s a cycle. Provided that you have made a very good job of your marketing planning this year, there is no point starting from scratch next year when you should be learning from the lessons of the previous year and building on what you have. 

The beauty for business owners is that once you have a robust process in place and you understand how to review and update it ongoing, it doesn’t need to be a monumental undertaking. By being organised and planned you should be able to keep on top of your marketing as opposed to letting it run away with your precious time, and possibly your sanity.

I wish I had the space and word count to take you through these 10 steps right here in marketing matters but the end  of my column is fast approaching. Fear not Business Matters readers I will detail the steps on the Business
Matters Website (go to the marketing blogs section for the link). I know that telling you the 10 steps is only giving
you the rod and the bait box, but we have to start somewhere, right?

FInd out more at www.chilligroup.com.au/giveamanafish